Why does society view autistic people as mentally incompetent?

[JayLapointe]

Anti-social is when you do mean things to your neighbors, unnecessarily.
There is nothing wrong with 'weird,' when it is harmless.

I like and appreciate that clarification. I'm a lot like Ron in that I prefer just to keep to myself for the most part, though occasionally I go out and "People". But I'm by no means anti-social in my outlook. I just need a very minimal amount of socializing in my life.

 

[JayLapointe]

Interesting subject to ponder the reality of how mental, social and even political competency can be compromised with such personalities as well as the rest of us, IMO. Most definitely yet another aspect of human behavior that is filled with those "shades of grey" as opposed being a "black and white" matter.

However what sets him apart is one consideration that amounts to common denominator with our species. His net worth and how it can instantly transcend so many shortcomings. Cultural hypocrisy where the wealthy are "eccentric" while the rest of us are just labeled as crazy- or stupid.

I should clarify, I echoed "mentally incompetent" but you honestly can't make that claim with the man. Eccentric for sure. It's his morals and political outlook that I question and find reprehensible. The whole what he's done with his wealth and influence versus what he could have done. And it isn't even a recent objection, I've not liked him ever since he wasted precious finite resources to make space junk with his stunt of launching a tesla into space.

But to my starting point, words and definitions matter and I should not have used my initial phrasing of calling him mentally incompetent as he is not. Can one be morally incompetent?

 

[Mary Terry]

Anti-social is when you do mean things to your neighbors, unnecessarily.
There is nothing wrong with 'weird,' when it is harmless.

I can't decide if I'm antisocial when I loudly bray at my donkeys or if I'm just weird. The donkeys usually answer me back. The distant neighbors can surely hear us.

 

[Judge]

I should clarify, I echoed "mentally incompetent" but you honestly can't make that claim with the man.

I disagree. The psychological reality that mental, social and political incompetence may overlap at times, making such distinctions murky at best, and sometimes anything but being mutually exclusive of one another.

Shortcomings that are not uncommon to most people no matter what their intellect may entail.

Thinking specifically of his inability to successfully "navigate" political personalities and command structures distinctly different from the private sector. Involving a combination of mental, social and ultimately political shortcomings that forced him out from his rather unpopular role in the public sector.

When an assessment of competency at times may amount to a metric of what one gains versus what they lose. Though I also don't see incompetence as a permanent mental state as well.